Minister Speeches 2014 - 2010

Today marks an important milestone in our ongoing endeavor to ensure that the story of our liberation struggle is told in full, in our own words and that it is preserved for future generations.The Gauteng Summit on the Liberation Heritage Route, will strengthen efforts to build a national consensus on the need for a Liberation Heritage Route and the sites that must form part of this Route.

We meet here this evening to send a message of hope, a message of healing and a message of peace to the victims of the conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, through arts.On this day our hearts go out to all those whose human dignity has been violated as a result of the conflict.In particular, we reach out to the women and children of the Eastern DRC, who have been scared both mentally and physically and whose scars may last a lifetime.

Please receive our fraternal greetings, and thank you for inviting us to the opening of the Cape Winelands Film Festival.We take this opportunity to congratulate the organizers of this Festival, which is now in its forth edition.We trust that this Festival will grow in leaps and bounds and that it will develop a significant global reach.

Thank you for inviting us to the launch of the French Film Festival here in Johannesburg.This is the first time that this Festival comes to our shores.We therefore hope that the people of South Africa, through out the length and breadth of our country, will warmly embrace this festival.

We have met here today to mark yet another milestone in our ongoing efforts to develop the arts in our country.The SA New Plays Writing programme is a partnership between the Department of Arts and Culture, Wits University, the British Council and Sustained Theatre.

We have met here today to mark the 150th Anniversary of the arrival of the first Indian indentured workers and the birth of the Indian community in South Africa.

On this important occasion, we wish to reiterate once more that; the South African Indian community, whose fore-fathers came from India to work as indentured labourers, 150 years ago, are today as South African as any other citizen of our country.

Thank you for inviting us to speak at the 35th World Congress of the International Alliance of Women.Before I address this Conference I request that we observe a moment of silence in honour of one of the veterans of our liberation struggle and in particular the struggle for gender equity uMama uBertha Gxowa, who passed on last week.